Under the "JobKeeper" wage subsidy scheme implemented by the Australian government during the outbreak, Australia disbursed A $27 billion to companies whose revenues fell less than required by the plan or actually increased during that period, according to the latest analysis by the Australian Ministry of Finance.

In a report released on Monday, the Australian Ministry of Finance said that at the height of the blockade, about A $11.4 billion was paid to companies whose sales did not fall 30 per cent or 50 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2020 and A $15.6 billion in the third quarter of 2020.

Of this total, A $4.6 billion went to companies with revenue growth in the second quarter from a year earlier, and A $9.2 billion went to companies with revenue growth in the third quarter.

The analysis embarrassed the Conservative government, which boasted fiscal discipline and criticised the then Labour government for overspending during the 2008-09 financial crisis.